The invention relates to an anchor assembly, in particular, but not exclusively, an anchor assembly for releaseably connecting a vehicle seat to the floor of a vehicle body.
An aim of the invention is to provide an anchor assembly for a vehicle seat that enables the seat to be slidably adjusted between predetermined fixed positions. It is also an aim of the invention to provide an anchor assembly that enables a vehicle seat to be releaseably connected to the floor of a vehicle body, so allowing the seat to be tilted or folded, or removed completely from the floor of the vehicle.
According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided an anchor assembly suitable for releaseably and adjustably securing a vehicle seat to the floor of a vehicle, comprising:
an anchor unit that in use is secured to the floor of the vehicle; and
a lock unit that in use is secured to the base of the vehicle seat; wherein the lock unit co-operates with an anchor member in the anchor unit so that:
the position of the vehicle seat can be adjusted by sliding the lock unit along the anchor member;
the lock unit can be secured in at least one predetermined adjustment position; and
the lock unit can be released from the anchor unit in at least one predetermined release position.
The anchor assembly of the invention provides a mechanism for securing a vehicle seat to the floor of a vehicle in such a manner that the position of the seat may be adjusted, and it may be secured in at least one predetermined adjustment position. The anchor assembly also allows the seat to be detached or removed from the floor of the vehicle when required.
The lock unit that in use is secured to the base of the vehicle seat may be provided with at least two pivotally mounted lock members. In use, such lock members are arranged to co-operate with the anchor member in the anchor unit.
The anchor member in the anchor unit may be provided with one or a number of recesses. When the lock unit includes at least two lock members, at least one of these lock members may be pivotal in and out of engagement with the or a recess on the anchor member. This allows the lock unit to be releaseably secured in at least one predetermined adjustment position on the anchor member.
During sliding movement of the lock unit along the anchor member, at least one of the lock members may co-operate with the anchor member to retain the lock unit in co-operation with the anchor member during sliding movement of the lock unit along the anchor member, unless the lock unit is located at a predetermined release position. This arrangement ensures that the seat does not detach from the floor of the vehicle, such as in a tipping action, except when specifically desired.
The anchor member is preferably an elongate rod that may be provided with a plurality of recesses equidistantly spaced along the length of the elongate rod.
The anchor unit that in use is secured to the floor of the vehicle may also include a generally U-shaped elongate channel member provided with a base and upstanding walls. The anchor member in the form of an elongate bar may be located so that it extends longitudinally through and along the interior region of the elongate channel member, spaced from the channel""s base and upstanding walls.
The elongate channel member may be secured to the floor of a vehicle by any suitable means. Such attachment means include bolts, rivets and/or welding.
The elongate rod may be secured to the floor of a vehicle by two legs. These legs may be fixedly secured to the floor of the vehicle by means such as bolts or welding.
In an embodiment of the invention, at least one lock member may be retained in co-operation with the anchor member during sliding movement of the lock unit along the anchor member in the form of an elongate bar, by at least one upstanding wall of the elongate channel member. In a further embodiment, all of the lock members may be retained in co-operation with the elongate bar by at least one of the upstanding walls of the elongate channel member.
In such embodiments, a predetermined release position may be defined by a cutaway portion in an upstanding wall of the elongate channel member that otherwise retains at least one of the lock members in co-operation with the elongate rod. Such a cutaway portion allows all of the lock members to be pivoted out of co-operation with the elongate rod, releasing the lock member, and hence detaching the vehicle seat to which the lock unit is attached from the floor of the vehicle.
The upstanding walls of the elongate channel member may be provided with outwardly extending flanges. These flanges provide a bearing support upon which a vehicle seat can be slidably seated.
In a particular embodiment of the invention, the lock unit is provided with at least two lock members, where each lock member is in the form of a hook. These hooks may be mounted on a pivot shaft, the pivot shaft being arranged to lie parallel to the anchor member.
At least one of the hooks, that is releasably engageable within the or a recess on the anchor member, may be provided with a projection so that when the hook is pivoted into engagement with the or a recess the projection engages within the recess.
The hooks may also be coupled together. One of the hooks may include a projection that projects outwardly from a side face of the hook that is adjacent to a side face of another hook, and extends through an arcuate slot through the or each other hook.
The arcuate slot allows a certain amount of free play in the movement of at least one of the hooks, without causing the at least one other hook to move.
In another particular embodiment of the invention, the lock unit includes four lock members, each in the form of a hook, pivotally mounted on a pivotal axis within a lock unit body housing.
The lock unit body housing may include hook stops that determine the maximum amount of rotation of the hooks about the pivotal axis.
The hooks may be spring biased relative to each other. Such a spring bias may be provided by a torsion spring.
To further ensure that at least two of the hooks are retained in co-operation with the anchor member during sliding movement of the lock unit along the anchor member, a face of each of the relevant hooks that co-operates with the anchor member may be provided with a negative taper angle.
The hooks may be mounted on a pivot shaft that has a cross-sectional shape that corresponds to the shape of the apertures through which the pivot shaft extends in two of the hooks. The shape of the apertures through which the pivot shaft extends in the other two hooks is preferably circular.
The cross-sectional shape of the pivot shaft and the correspondingly shaped apertures in the hooks are preferably generally D-shaped. Due to the relative shapes of the pivot shaft""s cross-section and the apertures in the hooks, rotation of the pivot shaft causes the two hooks with correspondingly shaped apertures to rotate, whilst the other two hooks remain unaffected.
A cable puller may be located on the pivot shaft to provide means to rotate the pivot shaft and so pivot the two hooks with correspondingly shaped apertures in and out of engagement with a recess on the anchor member. A cable may be attached directly to the other two hooks to provide means to pivot them about the pivot shaft.